D'amato Believed Good Chance Jets Would Return To New York

May 31, 1986|By New York Times

NEW YORK — Sen. Alfonse D'Amato, R-N.Y., testified in Federal District Court Friday that he had been led to believe for a time by Leon Hess, owner of the New York Jets, that the team would return to New York City in time for the 1989 National Football League season to play in a new domed stadium in Flushing Meadows.

That assertion, on the 13th day of the trial of the United State Football League's antitrust suit against the NFL, corroborated testimony made Thursday by Vincent Tese, chairman of the state Urban Development Corp., the agency coordinating planning and construction of the proposed stadium.

Both D'Amato and Tese had been called as witnesses by the USFL, which is seeking $1.32 billion in damages.

Under questioning by Harvey Myerson, the USFL's chief counsel, D'Amato, testified about three conversations he had with Hess regarding the possibility of the Jets' returning from Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., where they had moved after the 1983 season. Before that, the Jets had played in Shea Stadium.

D'Amato said he got the impression from the first two conversations -- one in 1983 after the Jets' move had been announced and a second in December 1985 -- that Hess wanted to bring the Jets back.

''I was led to believe, I believed, after discussions with Leon and conversations with Tese, that this was a very real, ongoing movement,'' D'Amato said. ''There was a very strong possibility.''

The third conversation, however, several weeks after the second, changed D'Amato's mind. ''It was my clear opinion,'' he said, ''that Mr. Hess was not returning and had no intention of returning.''